Princepal Singh Bajwa (Punjabi: ਪਿ੍ੰਸਪਾਲ ਸਿੰਘ; born 3 January 2001) is an Indian professional basketball player. Listed at 6 feet 10 inches (2.08 m) and 221 pounds (100 kg), he plays the power forward and center position.
| Free agent | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Power forward / center | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | 3 January 2001 Firozpur, Punjab, India | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 221 lb (100 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| NBA draft | 2021: undrafted | ||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 2019–present | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| 2019 | BA Centre of Excellence | ||||||||||||||
| 2021 | NBA G League Ignite | ||||||||||||||
| 2023 | Mumbai Stars | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
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Medals
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Early life and career
editSingh is a native of Dera Baba Nanak, Punjab, India, and grew up playing volleyball. In 2014, he travelled to Ludhiana to try out for a volleyball academy but instead drew the attention of Jaipal Singh, a coach at the Ludhiana Basketball Academy (LBA).[2][3] Standing 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) at the time, he soon joined the LBA and learned how to play basketball from Jaipal Singh.[4] In 2016, Singh earned a three-year full scholarship, worth $75,000, to play at SPIRE Institute and Academy in Geneva, Ohio but was unable to join the program after his visa was rejected twice.[5]
Singh trained at the NBA Academy India in New Delhi for 18 months, before being called up to the NBA Global Academy, a training center at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra, in May 2017.[6] Singh trained at the Global Academy on a two-year contract.[7] In 2019, he played for the BA Centre of Excellence in the NBL1 for Australia.[8]
In October 2019, he was named most valuable player (MVP) at the Indian Junior National Championship after leading Punjab to the title and scoring 40 points against Rajasthan in the final.[4] Singh helped Punjab capture a gold medal in the under-21 category of the Khelo India Youth Games in January 2020.[9][10]
Professional career
editNBA G League Ignite (2021)
editOn 28 July 2020, Singh signed a one-year contract with the NBA G League Ignite, a developmental team affiliated with the NBA G League. He became the first NBA Academy India graduate to sign a professional contract.[11] He played sparingly during the 2021 G League hub season, averaging 2.3 points in four games.[12]
Singh was a member of the Sacramento Kings roster for the 2021 NBA Summer League. He was selected by the Stockton Kings with the fifth pick of the third round of the 2021 NBA G League draft.[13]
New Zealand Breakers (2021–2022)
editOn 10 November 2021, Singh signed with the New Zealand Breakers of the Australian National Basketball League to a two-year development player contract.[14] He parted ways with the Breakers in January 2022 before playing in a game for the team.[15]
Mumbai Stars (2023)
editSingh played for the Mumbai Stars from 11th to the 20th of March in the Elite Pro Basketball League.[16]
National team career
editJunior national team
editIn September 2017, Singh led India to the gold medal at the SABA Under-16 Championship in Kathmandu, Nepal. He was named tournament MVP after scoring 20 points in a 131–50 win over Bhutan in his final game.[17] In April 2018, Singh competed at the FIBA Under-16 Asian Championship in Foshan, China, averaging 22.7 points and 13 rebounds per game.[18] At the 2018 FIBA Under-18 Asian Championship in Nonthaburi, Thailand, he averaged 15.5 points, 9.8 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game as the captain of the Indian team.[19]
Senior national team
editIn December 2018, Singh made his debut for the Indian senior national team at the Super Kung Sheung Cup International Championship in Hong Kong.[2] In February 2020, he was selected to represent India for Window 1 of the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup qualification stage.[20] In his first game, on 21 February, Singh recorded three points, five rebounds and two assists in 12 minutes in a 68–67 loss to Bahrain.[21]
Career statistics
edit| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
NBA G League
editRegular season
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020–21 | NBA G League | 4 | 0 | 6.3 | .500 | 1.000 | .500 | 1.0 | .0 | .3 | .0 | 2.3 |
| Career | 4 | 0 | 6.3 | .500 | 1.000 | .500 | 1.0 | .0 | .3 | .0 | 2.3 | |
Playoffs
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020–21 | NBA G League | 1 | 0 | 2.0 | – | – | – | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 |
| Career | 1 | 0 | 2.0 | – | – | – | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 | |
Personal life
editSingh's father, Gurmej Singh, is an electrician.[22] His father stands 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) and his mother, Hardeep Kaur, stands 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in).[23]
References
edit- ^ 70th National Basketball Championship: Punjab men and Railways women repeat as champions Gopalakrishnan R (Sportskeeda), 1 April 2020. Accessed 13 August 2021.
- ^ a b Sen, Debayan (5 December 2018). "Meet Princepal, Indian basketball's 'next big Singh'". ESPN. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Hope to make it to the NBA one day: India's Princepal Singh". Outlook. Indo-Asian News Service. 24 December 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ a b Raj, Pratyush (30 October 2019). "Gurdaspur hoopster is the new 'Prince' of Indian basketball". The Times of India. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Senthil, Anjana (5 December 2018). "Princepal's tryst with destiny". The Hindu. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Matange, Yash (8 May 2020). "'The NBA Academy experience has been great for me' - Princepal Singh says while discussing the three-year journey and more". National Basketball Association. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
- ^ Menon, Anirudh (17 January 2020). "'I will play in the NBA' - Princepal Singh has eyes firmly set on the big prize". ESPN. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Princepal Singh". usbasket.com. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
- ^ Matange, Yash (22 January 2020). "Khelo India Youth Games 2020: Princepal Singh leads Punjab to gold in U-21 category as Kerala grabs most basketball medals". National Basketball Association. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
- ^ J, Raunak (31 July 2020). ""Didn't expect it to happen so quickly," says India's Princepal Singh after signing NBA G League contract [Exclusive]". www.sportskeeda.com. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
- ^ "Princepal Singh Becomes First NBA Academy Graduate To Sign With NBA G League". NBA G League. 28 July 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
- ^ Isaga, JR (8 March 2021). "Tried and tested: Assessing the NBA G League Ignite prospects". Rappler. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
- ^ "Princepal Singh Selected by the Stockton Kings in 2021 NBA G League Draft". News18. 29 October 2021. Retrieved 2 November 2021.
- ^ "India's Top Prospect Signs with the Sky Sport Breakers". nzbreakers.basketball. 10 November 2021. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
- ^ MacDonald, Jackson (11 January 2022). "Singh just the latest departure for luckless Breakers". The Inner Sanctum. Retrieved 20 June 2022.
- ^ "I'm at my lowest moment now, says Princepal Singh". The Times of India. 7 March 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
- ^ "India crowned 2nd SABA U16 Zone champions". Ekalavyas. 9 September 2017. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Princepal primed to be the Next Big Singh for India Basketball". FIBA. 31 July 2018. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Flojo, Enzo (8 November 2018). "Which other youth standouts can play at the senior level now?". FIBA. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Matange, Yash (17 February 2020). "FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Qualifiers: Princepal Singh and Amaan Sandhu part of India squad for Window 1". National Basketball Association. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Princepal Singh". FIBA. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Sampat, Amit (1 June 2016). "The Story Of Prince Lal Singh, An Electrician's Son Who Realized His US Basketball Dream". India Times. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Mahendra, Vikram (1 June 2016). "Punjab teenager Prince Pal Singh earns $75,000 scholarship to train in USA, could play in NCAA by 2020". Sportskeeda. Retrieved 19 June 2020.